About Us

Billy’s Place is a community in the West Valley that provides comfort and companionship to kids and families experiencing grief—no matter where they are on their journey.

Through support groups, special events, and a community of people who ‘get it,’ we help families rediscover moments of happiness without guilt. We nurture these moments as signs of hope for more promising days ahead.

We see people for who they are—people with complex and beautiful identities beyond the grief. 

We don’t see kids who have lost a parent or adults who have lost a partner or child. We see Emily, and Jack, and Billy. We see people like us.

We welcome all kids and families who have experienced the loss of someone special to find community and peer support at Billy’s Place—a safe community created for them and by them.

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Our Story

FROM OUR FOUNDER, JULI MCGREAL

The need for Billy's Place arose after my son Billy and I began coping with the sudden death of my husband, Mike. Billy was only 15 months old, and our lives were changed forever. As a team, Billy and I have worked together to use what we have learned in our journey to help others know there is hope.

Billy's Place is a tribute to children and families who will be forever changed and challenged by the death of their loved ones. At Billy's Place, we are proud to provide an organization that helps children and their families cope with the death of a significant person.

Your Support

Because of generous donors like YOU, all of our groups and events are provided at no cost to the family.

DONATE TODAY

Meet Our Team

JULI MCGREAL

Founder, Family Support Specialist

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JULI MCGREAL

Juli is the founder of Billy's Place. She is the Director of Care and Compassion and works with Billy's Place families as she is one of the first points of contact as a Family Support Specialist. She is invested in continually learning - not only from her journey but that from her son through expanding her knowledge on how to best help the children and families of Billy's Place. She has completed extensive training in grief support, including multiple seminars and workshops from a world-renowned grief expert, Dr. Alan Wolfelt. Since 2012, Juli has successfully managed all aspects of the organization since inception and is involved daily. The newest role Juli has taken on allows her to share about Billy's Place in the community as the Community Outreach Specialist. Juli grew up in the Chicago area and moved out to AZ in 2008. Juli spends her time active in her church, relaxing with friends and family, and volunteering in her community. She has a passion for helping, loving, and encouraging others who are hurting. The title of Director of Care and Compassion is perfect for her.

About Juli

KRIS FRIEDMAN

Founder, Executive Director

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KRIS FRIEDMAN

Kris is the Executive Director of Billy's Place. Through her own experiences encountering her father's death as a teenager and watching a dear friend's child deal with the loss of his father at an early age, she is passionate about helping children as they walk along their grief journey. Kris has been a business owner with an extensive marketing and fund-development background. She attended numerous seminars, including the yearly National Alliance for Children's Grief symposium and continuing education from Dr. Alan Wolfelt. Kris began Billy's Place with the founder, Juli McGreal, in 2012. Grieving teens hold a special place in her heart, and she continues to help when she can with the Teens and Young Adults. Kris manages the day-to-day operations of Billy's Place, fund development, grant writing, outreach, and overseeing the staff. She grew up in the Chicago area, is an avid Bears fan, and enjoys the heck out of her husband, four kids, three grandkids, and three fur babies!! To say she loves helping others is an understatement, as her heart is with each and every family that walks through Billy's Place door.

About Kris

MELODY LOGAN

Director of Programs

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MELODY LOGAN

Melody is the Director of Programs at Billy's Place. She is a wife, mother of 3, and grandmother of 8. Before joining the staff, she was a volunteer at Billy's Place and especially loved the "Littles."

Melody has worked in the early childhood field for 25 years. For many of those years, she gave leadership and oversight to hundreds of volunteers. She recruited, trained, and supported them, helping them find the area where they could make a positive and rewarding contribution. She provided encouragement, opportunity, and good communication, creating a solid foundation for success.

Melody also has years of experience as a director of programs. She brings positive structure, creative systems, effective communication, and curriculum insight to help Billy's Place continue to develop meaningful peer group programs for our families.

Melody loves helping people and giving them opportunities for further growth and development. She's excited to be on Billy's Place staff and support them as they help others.

About Melody

MADELYN VINCENT

Development Specialist

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MADELYN VINCENT

Madelyn is the new Development Specialist at Billy's Place! She is passionate about making a difference in the lives of children and families, having studied Human Development Family Sciences with a focus on Child Development and Psychology at Oregon State University. Since leaving school, Madelyn has spent the last several years in operations, marketing and management roles. Realizing her experiences and skills could make a bigger impact, Madelyn decided to follow her heart and pursue a career in the nonprofit industry. 
 
"Billy's Place is the perfect place for me, and upon joining the team, I immediately felt what so many other families feel when they come to Billy's Place - a sense of security, a sense of belonging, genuine support, and care. There is so much love here. I want to give back to these families what I wish I'd had when I experienced the death of close loved ones. I feel my role is to bring others peace and healing through the development and growth of Billy's Place."
 
Madelyn brings with her a genuine love of people, processes, and planning. On her off time, you can find her spending quality time with her little sister and two pups, tending the community garden in her neighborhood, devouring a new book, or simply soaking up the sun. 
ABOUT MADELYN

KAYLENE ASHBRIDGE

School Bereavement Liaison

KARINA HAHOLY

School Bereavement Liaison

DEE CORD

Group Night Coordinator

NETTY MOSELEY

Office Manager

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KAYLENE ASHBRIDGE

Kaylene is a School Bereavement Liaison and a Group Night Coordinator at Billy's Place. She is collaborating with the New York Life Foundation in the nationwide Grief Sensitive Schools Initiative, an endeavor designed to equip teachers and key members within the schools to care for grieving students. Kaylene has a solid educational background, previously working as a school counselor and classroom teacher, and most recently retiring from being a principal. She has witnessed firsthand the need to support grieving students, school staff, and families within the school system. She shares a passion for children and is a lifelong learner. Recently, Kaylene attended Dr. Alan Wolfelt's four-day training on "Companioning the Grieving Child" to further the skills needed to welcome new families to Billy's Place while facilitating group nights, as well as supporting our schools. She has lived in Phoenix since 1986 and is originally from the great state of Ohio- Go, Bucks! She graduated from Bowling Green State University, where she met her husband. Her grown son lives in Mesa. She also has a rescue Golden Retriever and a grand kitty. She is delighted to be a part of Billy's Place!

About Kaylene
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KARINA HAHOLY

Karina is a School Bereavement Liaison at Billy's Place. She first came to Billy's Place as a volunteer with the teen group, which she facilitated for 2 years. After taking a break to have a family, she came back to Billy's Place in this new role. She just couldn't stay away! Karina lost her brother, Joey, to a drug-induced suicide when she was 12 years old. She is passionate about educating our schools on grief after being a grieving child herself who felt misunderstood. Karina's calling is to help others who are dealing with loss and serve a greater purpose born out of the tragedy she experienced. She has two young boys, a hardworking husband, and a dog named Kevin. When not at work, you can find Karina at Starbucks, antiquing, trying new restaurants, or taking photos!

About Karina
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DEE CORD

Dee Ann is a Group Night Coordinator at Billy's Place and a volunteer hostess. She has been a volunteer on the Hike for Hope committee for the past four years and has contributed to the success of the hikes. Dee is passionate about dance and helping people, and she especially has a heart for kids. After dancing in a dance company for six years, Dee earned a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from ASU and a post-bac in education from ASU West. She has been a dance teacher at Alhambra High School for the last 25 years and has been part of students' lives through teaching, mentoring, and coaching. In addition to teaching, Dee Ann is also a member at Christ Church of the Valley and has volunteered there for the past five years, being part of the children's ministry for the past two. Dee has five beautiful children and four amazing grandkids.

About Dee
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NETTY MOSELEY

Netty is the Administrative Assistant at Billy's Place. She is a native of Arizona who loves desert sunsets. She is married and is a mom of two boys, five dogs, one hamster, and many plants. Previously, she worked as an Environmental Health Inspector, but after having her first child, Luke, she decided to be a stay-at-home mother for a stint. Then, she decided it was time to change career paths and re-enter the workforce. She has taken several business classes at Rio Salado Community College and plans to further pursue her education in accounting. Billy's Place has been in her thoughts ever since her second son, Elias, was stillborn, and she was looking for grief resources. She feels grateful to be part of Billy's Place because of its mission and contributions to the community.

About Netty

SHANNON HAWKINS

Curriculum and Training Specialist

KARA WASHINGTON

Group Night Coordinator

MOOSE

Chief Cuddling Officer

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SHANNON HAWKINS

Shannon is the Program Assistant at Billy's Place. She moved to Phoenix last year from Oregon with her husband, three children, and two dogs. Shannon has a bachelor's degree in Women's Studies and spent her early career helping women and children victims of abuse. She obtained a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Washington. As an MSW, Shannon has worked in hospitals assisting survivors of traumatic loss and Hospice, helping families navigate the end-of-life journey. After spending the past few years homeschooling her children, she has recently returned to her career as a grief worker with Billy's Place. She is also a Certified Grief Educator and Certified Trauma Informed Grief Coach for kids. Shannon experienced the death of her father at 14 and knows firsthand some of the challenges that teenagers face with traumatic loss. Her lifelong passion for helping bereaved children has only intensified after having children of her own. Her greatest passions are strategy board games with the family and taking the kids to National Parks. So far they have 27 stamps in their National Park Passport book with a plan to see them all!

About Shannon
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KARA WASHINGTON

Kara is a Group Night Coordinator at Billy's Place. Originally from Los Angeles, California, she relocated to Arizona in 2006 alongside her husband and immediate family.

She holds a BA in Accounting from Loyola University Chicago and obtained her M.B.A from Cal State Long Beach. Although she passed the Certified Public Accountant Exam, Kara ultimately discovered her passion in Finance. Currently, Kara is a Senior Financial Analyst at Mayo Clinic Arizona, supporting the House of Surgery.

Ironically, her connection with Mayo Clinic began when her husband, Chad, needed a heart transplant, and the evaluation process was initiated at the clinic. Unfortunately, despite receiving two hearts and using an artificial heart, Chad lost his battle on August 17, 2013, just one day after their son Amare’s 5th birthday.

Following this profound loss, Kara and Amare were genuinely fortunate to discover Billy’s Place shortly after its inception. Kara and Amare attribute their present-day joy to the community found at Billy’s Place. Billy’s Place provided the tools needed to cope with their unimaginable loss. Although their journey was challenging, as all grief is, Billy’s Place infused light, hope, and gratitude into their darkest days.

A decade after Chad’s passing, Kara found love again and recently married Joseph Prevost. She considers herself incredibly blessed to have come full circle and views the opportunity to walk alongside other widows and families as the utmost privilege and blessing.

ABOUT KARA
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MOOSE

I'm Moose, AND I'm kind of a big deal...

I'm such a lucky guy. It's always been easy for me to make friends, and I just made a bunch more! Mom (people call her Kris) started bringing me to Billy's Place this year, and I didn't know what to expect—just that this is a safe community for kids and families who have lost someone special. Some kids I meet are a little shy at first and need me to hang out... others are more hesitant because I am a stranger... most come running right up to me with the biggest and warmest hugs!

I LOVE HUGS! Love them!

Do you know what I learned about the cool people I met? They're all coming to Billy's Place because they're dealing with something really sad (and because they love to see me!), but they still all have their own stories, and each story is so different. Jacob's mom needed someone to sit with her at first, and I loved resting my head on her lap. RJ totally wanted hugs and rough-housing from the second he came in the door. You bet I was up for it!

Emma seemed a little scared at first, not just of me, but everyone at Billy's Place. It makes me sad when people are scared of me because I'm actually so FUN! I figured maybe if she warmed up to me, we could meet other friends together, and she'd feel less alone. And that's just what happened!

I can't wait to meet and love more new friends! These are awesome kids, and I can tell that sometimes they feel sad and scared and all sorts of feelings. But we are here, and we are going to try our hardest to make them feel at home!

About Moose

Board of Directors

Collage of eight diverse professional headshots labeled "our amazing board" for "billy's place," each paired with names below: sarah, holly, jacqueline, missy, juli, kris, aaron, iva.

Sarah Baker, President
Holly Dedmon, Vice President
Jacqueline Spiegel, Treasurer
Melissa Jackson, Secretary
Juli McGreal, Member
Kris Friedman, Member
Aaron Spence, Member
Iva Rody, Member

Sarah Baker, President of the Billy's Place Board of Directors, shares highlights from 2022 and speaks to the consistent priorities that drive our dedicated group of leaders.

2023 Letter From Sarah Baker, Board President (PDF)

Financials and Non-Profit Governance

2022 Impact Report (pdf)
2022 990 - Public (pdf)
2021 Impact Report (pdf)
2021 990 - Public (pdf)
2020 Impact Report (pdf)
2020 990 - Public (pdf)
2019 Impact Report (pdf)
2019 990 - Public (pdf)
Billy's Place Conflict of Interest Amended August 2022 (pdf)
Billy's Place Whistle Blower Policy Amended August 2022 (pdf)
Articles of Incorporation (pdf)
Bylaws of Billy's Place August 2022 - Public (pdf)
Billy's Place Refund Policy (pdf)